Longerathian Wars
The Longerathian Wars was a series of conflicts waged from 427 BP to 138 BP between the Empire of Estontetso and the Kingdom of Anglyodascunya. Each side drew many allies into the war. It was one of the most notable conflicts in history. The war marked both the height of chivalry and its subsequent decline, and the development of strong national identities in Longerath. Background Longerath and Smalik in the 5th Century BP was essentially divided into three main empires. Independent nations still survived, such as Phenixia, but they were never significant powers and were often under the sway of one of the larger states. In the north, there was the Empire of Estontetso, formed by Natestus, the last Emperor of Liliana. Estontetso had originally consisted of the area referred to as Estontetso today, but had expanded gradually to occupy all of Draconia as well. It had originally included Gorami as well, but it had declared independence and resisted any Estontetsan attempts to reclaim it. To the south there was the Kingdom of Anglyodascunya, a merger between the kingdoms of Dascunya and Angliya, which together controlled almost all of the southern continent. It was based in the heart of Dascunya, relatively close to the Estontetsan border. Estontetso proper and Dascunya proper were both quite near the edge of their territory, and both quite close to each other. To the west lay the Lendosan Empire, based in the Western Isles but ruling a territory covering south Liliana, Percevejan, and all of Smalik except for Bowestra. Lendosa, which had only been reunited in 529 BP by the Third Treaty of Solaris after the disastrous war with the now defunct Liliani Empire, and was once again turning its attention outwards. Its first target for expansion had been the interior of Smalik, which it conquered after three initial explorations by Francisco do Reigorodo. Smalik, however, was not overly populated and undeveloped, and the Lendosans quickly turned their attention elsewhere. At the time of the Longerathian Wars, it was rumoured that the Lendosan Confederation was planning to launch an expedition to northern Longerath, and expand its empire into northern Liliana and Escorpionica. Lendosa was also eying the Anglyodascunyan territory of Bowestra. It was an ambition of many within the Lendosan Senate to establish Lendosa as the dominant power in Longerath. From the time of Anglyodascunya's foundation, relations between it and the neighbouring Estontetsan Empire were tense. Estontetso had never been overly warm towards Dascunya, which lead the most damaging of the rebellions against the Estontetso-based Liliani Empire. When Dascunya amalgamated with Ançalda and Uestadenia, Estontetso was concerned, and when it merged with the large but largely undeveloped Kingdom of Angliyaa to the south, it became openly alarmed. The marriage of William V of Dascunya to Catherin of Angliya created a unified state spanning from Estontetso to the southernmost tip of the continent. It was given the name the Kingdom of Anglyodascunya or like the previous kingdom of Dascunya, it is sometimes called the Drekanian Empire. The vast Kingdom was divided into nine Grand Duchies, Dascunya, Angliya, Samuelonia, Bowestra, Uestadenia, Achenar, Morangol, Solanchatka and Aigador. Natestian War, 427 BP - 392 BP Main article: Natestian War In 427 BP, the already strained peace broke completely down when Emperor Natestus III of Estontetso sent Estontetsan armies across the border into Dascunya, sweeping aside initial Anglyodascunyan opposition. The Anglyodascunyans regrouped, however, and fierce fighting broke out all along the long frontier. Slowly, however, the Estontetsans advanced, conquering Ançalda, South Divana, and Terrablanca one by one. At the same time, Estontetsan armies moved into Phenixia, conquering the coastal regions parallel to their Dascunyan conquests. In 392 BP, thirty-seven years after the war began, Estontetsan forces broke through Anglyodascunyan lines and stormed St. Hugues, the capital of Anglyodascunya. In August of 392 a treaty was signed between Harold I of Anglyodascunya and Cornelius II of Estontetso bringing an end to Natestian War. Catherinian War, 381 BP - 359 BP Main article: Catherinian War In 381 BP, the much loved grandmother of Harold I of Anglyodascunya, Catherin of Anglyodascunya was assassinated by agents in the pay of Justinian I of Estontetso in Rossinia, causing fury across Anglyodascunya. Harold I of Anglyodascunya reacted by marching on St. Hugues and laid siege to the city starting the Catherinian War. The Angylodascunyan capital had been relocated to Rossinia after the loss of St Hugues and during the short period of peace, regrouped its forces. The Anglyodascunyans hoped to recover from the loss of St. Hugues, and push the Estontetsans out of Dascunya, but this was not to be. The Estontetsans, having secured the former capital and its surrounding lands, Defeated Harold's army laying siege and defeating the Anglyodascunyans in several major engagements and conquering the new capital at Rossinia. From there, the Estontetsans marched with little opposition south into Uestadenia and the southern plains. What was left of the Anglyodascunyan military fell back to Angliya proper, and proclaimed a third capital in Lagod. At the same time, they withdrew their forces from the far south, abandoning Solanchatka and Aigador, needing all the forces they could gather. The garrisons in Achenar and Morangal were also severely depleted. When the Achenarians rebelled and declared independence, the Angliyans were unable to stop them with the forces currently deployed there, and unwilling to spare the troops needed to reinforce their garrisons. Garrisons were also withdrawn from Bowestra, although the territory remained nominally under Lagod's authority for the duration of the fighting. Morangese Rebellion, 355 BP - 351 BP In 355 BP, Morangese rebels looked to ally themselves with Estontetso and to overthrow the Morangese nobles loyal to the Anglyodascunyan crown. Isaac I of Anglyodascunya sent forces to Morangal under the command of Lord Hugo Blackmore who arrived in Morangal in 354 where he launched a vicious campaign of retribution on the Morangese rebels. The Morangese Rebellion ended with victory for Lord Blackmore but had gained much resentment towards the pro-Anglyodascunyan Morangese nobles. Edmundian War, 301 BP - 287 BP Main article: Edmundian War In August 301, Edmund II of Anglyodascunya sailed from Francisco with a force of about 10,500 and laid siege to Malinfleur, Dascunya. The city resisted for longer than expected, but finally surrendered on 22 September 301. Because of the unexpected delay, most of the campaign season was gone. Rather than march on Rossina directly, he elected to make a raiding expedition across Dascunya. In the campaign he found himself outmaneuvered and low on supplies and had to fight a much larger Estontetsan army at the Battle of Dendinburg. Despite the problems and having a smaller force, his victory was near-total; the Estontetsan defeat was catastrophic, costing many of their leaders. A large number of Estontetsan nobility was killed. Edmund was apparently concerned that the large number of prisoners taken were a security risk and he ordered their deaths. After months of negotiation between Edmund II of Anglyodascunya and Claudius III of Estontetso, the Treaty of Rossina (287 BP) was signed which bought an end to the Edmundian War with an agreement for Edmund's son and heir, Hugh to marry Claudius' only child, the infant Ardella of Estontetso. It was hoped that the marriage pact would bring an end to the Longerathian Wars and unite Estontetso to Anglyodascunya. The Black Wedding The union for the marriage of Hugh I of Anglyodascunya to Ardella of Estontetso was arranged for 276 BP, upon Ardella's 15th birthday in Saint Hughes. On the day of the wedding, Hugh I of Anglyodascunya arrived in the city with a large entourage, including over 300 nobles and family members. The wedding however became a disaster. As the royal couple were taking their vows, the cathedral was stormed by a group of Estontetsan nobles led by Arvinius Dacia. Dacia entered the ceremony with 200 crossbowmen and slaughtered the Anglydodascunyan entourage. The attack was in part, revenge for the large number of Estontetsan nobles executed after the Battle of Dendinburg but mainly formulated by a group of nobles (who became known as the Gorami Five) who opposed an Estontetson Princess marrying into the Anglyodascunyan royal family. Claudius III of Estontetso was completely unaware of the plans and was furious at the murderous act, but was forced to cover his anger to prevent a revolt by his nobles. With the death of Hugh I of Anglyodascunya along with three of his four sisters and many of Anglyodascunya's nobles, the Kingdom was in disarray. Only Hugh's sister, Evelyna of Anglyodascunya had remained in Lagod and her husband Lord Edwin Saxonburg was encouraged by many nobles to claim the crown. Saxonberg was hugely popular among the Anglyodascunyan nobility and was proclaimed King, beginning the Saxonberg dynasty. Samuelonian War 274 BP - 248 BP Main article: Samuelonian War After the disastrous events of the Black Wedding, both Estontetso and Anglyodascunya began preparing for war. Edwin II of Anglyodascunya sought to create alliances with Lendosa, the Solanchatkan city states and Phenixia, whilst Lendosa refused to enter the war, Solanchatka and Phenixia agreed to join the new campaign. When news reached Claudius III of the new Anglyodascunyan alliance, he launched a two pronged attack into Phenixia and Samuelonia. The new phase of the Longerathian Wars was to become the bloodiest of the wars with battles raging across central Longerath. From 274 BP to 265 BP, the new Anglyodascunyan alliance held the upper hand, winning a number of important battles, the biggest of which being Anglyodascunya retaking Rossinia. The Estontetsan's suffered huge losses in both the Phenixian and Samuelonian campaigns and Claudius III was killed by a group of Estontetson nobles after the Battle of Kastor Bridge in 270 BP. Araticus II managed to turn the tide of the conflict in 265 BP when he signed a treaty with Phenixia, agreeing to end Estontetsan attacks in Phenixia in return for the Phenixians agreeing to end their support for Anglyodascunya. This allowed the Estontetsan's to refocus their forces into Samuelonia. From 265 BP to 248 BP, Anglyodascunya suffered huge losses in a bitter campaign in Samuelonia. By 256 BP Anglyodascunyan forces changed there tactics. With insufficient armies to fight large pitched battles, Aethelstan I of Anglyodascunya chose to fortify castles and fight from behind the walls of the numerous castles across Samuelonia. The Estontetsan's now began to suffer huge losses losing thousands of men for every castle taken. However by 248 BP, Estontetso completed its conquest of Samuelonia. The victory was bitter sweet, as although the Anglyodascunyan's had been pushed back to Angliya, they suffered huge numbers of losses of men. Aethelstonian War, 236 BP - 219 BP The Estontetsan forces, having conquered the heart of Anglyodascunya, did not expect any threat from the Anglyodascunyan's. Nevertheless, the Aethelstan I of Anglyodascunya regrouped superbly, and began a new campaign in 236 BP. The arrival of the Atrox Company heralded a new era of of war fare with foreign mercenaries from far away lands bolstering the Anglyodascunyan ranks. In a series of surprise victories, they turned the Estontetsans from attackers to defenders. The Estontetsans, who had been drained from the constant warfare outside of their own lands, began to fall back. Slowly but surely, the invaders fell back. The key turning point in the war was the recapture of Francisco and Rossinia, after which the Estontetsans had no significant success in the Longerathian Wars. Morangal and Achenar Wars, 213 BP - 196 BP As Anglyodascunya's strength grew, it also began to refocus attention to the south. It was now able to spare the forces needed to secure territory, and so launched a smaller version of the reconquest with the aim of regaining its southern territories as well. Morangal was conquered, and northern Achenar was retaken shortly afterwards, causing the collapse of the Achenarian Federation. Anglyodascunya also reasserted its authority over the colonies of Bowestra, in southern Smalik, which had been independent in all but name. Lendosan collapse, 169 BP Also of note was the collapse of the Lendosan Confederation, taking its Empire with it. This was, in many ways, a consequence of the ongoing warfare between Angliyaa and Estontetso, including the enormous numbers of refugees admitted into the country from the fighting. The causes of this breakup are more clearly explained in the section regarding the Lendosan Empire, and is only mentioned because it effectively removed one of the three most powerful states in the region from the scene, ruling out any intervention in the warfare. Many believed that open warfare could have flared up at any time between Lendosa and Estontetso, most likely regarding the Estontetsan annexation of the Percevejan peninsula, a Lendosan territory, by means of treachery and bribary of officials. The collapse of Lendosa eliminated the possibility of Estontetso fighting a two-front war against the most powerful states in the region. Nevertheless, the individual members of the shattered Confederation were enough of a danger to the hard-pressed Estontetsans to warrant a peace treaty signed between Estontetso and each of the independent states. Henry's War, 166 BP - 138 BP With the support of the Dascunyan people, the Angliyaans pressed onwards, eventually recapturing the old Anglyodascunyan capital of St. Hugues. As the Estontetsans were pushed back, they brought more and more troops south from their border territories, causing them to loose control of the north just as Angliyaa had lost the south. The Angliaan advance was brought to a halt on the old border between Estontetso and Dascunya, when all of Dascunya was free of Estontetsan control. In 138 BP, Estontetso suffered a popular revolution, and the Emperor was overthrown. The new government immediately proposed peace. Aftermath New borders were established between all the warring parties. The new Estontetsan government permenently renounced all claims to territories south of its borders, and turned its attentions northwards, reconquering its former holdings in Draconia, a campaign completed in 136 BP. Dascunya, Samuelonia and Angliya, despite having been unified once before, and having fought together against the Estontetsans, chose not to reform the Anglyodascunyan Empire. Dascunya began to rebuild itself, while Angliya once again turned its attentions southwards towards the remaining Achenarian stats, Aigador, and Solanchatka. Bowestra, however, refused to declare allegiance to either Dascunya or Angliyaa, and became an independent principality. The territories taken from Phenixia were returned to it. A few years after the peace, Lendosa was reunited in a state called the Confederation of the Western Isles. This state was based around Lendia and Piolhosa, and did not include the foreign territories of the Lendosan Empire. It also signed the final peace accords. Category:Wars Category:History of Longerath